His Little Star
by Gminis
Summary: After a long stressing mission, Itachi returns to his home and to his baby brother. Birthday gift for Itachi! Sasuke and Itachi brotherly love. NO SLASH! One shot.


**This is my happy birthday gift to Itachi. I know it was on thursday, but couldn't publish it then. You see, Itachi is my favorite character (aside from Naruto.) and it might sound weird, but I truly wish to be like him someday. So I wanted this to be good. Anyway, here it is! Review!**

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"You also serve as the Uchiha clan's pipe line to the village nerve center. You know that don't you?"

Those words echoed through the teens head as he walked down the streets of his precious village, The Hidden Leaf. The sun had long since disappear from the ceruelen skies, hidding beyond the unreachable horizon, allowing the moon to take its place. The night's coldness blew softly from north to south, shaking the leafs from the father tree and carrying them to an unknown destiny. The stars from above twinkled in an simpathetic manner as they stared at the young Uchiha prodigee, casting his way with much needed light. After long mission with the ANBU Black OPS, the last thing the boy wanted to see was darkness. Ruthless, cold, and consuming nothingness. He prayed to get away of that. He was a shinobi. A village's tool. A guardian who was meant to protect from the shadows. He could do that. He soundless watch over the people from the blackness of the world. But it was hard. Hard not to suffocate. Hard not to drown. Hard to breath. And because he knew it was hard, he had his light.

A smile came to his face as he thoughts drifted to his little star. Because that's what it was, a star. A celestial body that floats in the heavens surrended by a light ever so bright. A kind and bodyless soul that shared some of his brightness with the night casting light where there's only supposed to be shadows. Warm, gentle, mesmerizing, and pure. Oh, so pure. And it was his. _It was just his_. Itachi wasn't a materialist person, he didn't saw the importance of having things that weren't necessarity for once survival, but this was necessarity. _This_ was _important_. He never felt so happy of being the owner, the guardian, of something ever in his short life. It was a miracle. And it was his. Call him selfish, but aren't we always? When you have something you care for, don't you fight to keep it with you? Only the poor human that has never experience love before has the right to judge him, and even then, he doesn't care.

He doesn't brags about it, is something private. Something _personal_. And there could be others that might wish to steal it from him. Worse, to _smother_ it. It shall be a sin for someone with filthy hands to lay a finger on _his_ light. The only monster allowed to touch it was him and because he would never tried to hurt its brightness. It was something he kept as a secret, but something that, at the dame time, everyone knew. Apparently when you've been touch by does clean little hands there was no hidding it. It... _radiated_ from him, as Shisui once put it. It was his light what kept him going. That, and the desire of being that way.

They said the Will of Fire was bright in him, which give him hope. Maybe he could shine just as bright someday. Maybe the fire within him could one day burn the same way his little star did. That was his desire. This village... he loved this village. He loved this village for giving his star a place where he could shine. He loved it for following the same ideals and defending the same values he had. He loved it. It was his home. His and his light's. They were both important. He would fight for both of them. He would die for both of them. After seeing the horrors of war, after seeing the masscres and the hatred, he only hoped for two things. For the village he had fight for to achieve peace. For the place where he belonged to be finally happy. And for his light to never go through that. War changes you. It changed him. It changed Shisui. It changed everyone. He didn't want it. He didn't want the light of his star to get dull and cover in shadows. He wouldn't allow that. That's why he would protect the village. Because he would do anything for stopping another war. Because he wanted peace.

He wanted that, but his father didn't.

The Third Great Ninja War didn't taught him anything. There was always a reason to keep fighting. There was always a reason for conflict. Inside, or outside the village it didn't matter. The Uchiha's, so power thirsty, will always find a reason for a battle. _Ignorants..._ , the smile disappeared. They didn't undertand. They didn't know how the world really was. All of them were trapped on their petty little words they dare called reality. They listened to no one but their own voice and the ones that speak the same words. They were sleep and they needed to wake up. None understood what they really wanted to do. How could they? _In the fog of ignorance its hard to evolve...,_ he knew that. He said it. But idiots or not, they were still his family _. By blood..._ Blood. That's what he was trying to avoid. The ultimate bloodshed that came with every conflict, with every war. The clan believed that they deserved the power, but how could they when all they wished for was destruction. They lost sight of what is truly important. Peace. A world where all the nations could leave in harmony. Protecting your love ones. That's what mattered.

But not right now. Now his thoughts were different. He was tired and needed to see his star. His little light always made things better. It always remind him to keep going. When he was with it, he will always feel happy. Shisui knew that, and being the kind person he was, he promised he will finish the mission on his own and told him to go home. He knew how much his light meant to him and wanted Itachi to be with it. _I need to thank Shisui later for covering me...,_ he thought absently, as he continue to walk towards the Uchiha compound. His father will be angry at him for leaving the mission and allowing Shisui to take over. Or maybe not. Shisui was more skilled than him anyway.

When he finally reached the compound most of it was covered in darkness. A few houses still had the lights on, but they were disappearing quickly. Itachi wasn't surprise. It was late, after all. Two, three a.m., maybe? He lost track of time. His star will most likely be sleep by now. He didn't mind.

He finally get to the house. It was dark, no lights. Well, it was late. Opening the door, he took of his shoes and placed them on their spot near the wall. He was already making his way to the second floor when his trained ears detected a sound. He grabbed the hilt of his sword as he followed the noise down to the living room. Silent as he was taught to be, he crept towards the source of the sound. The couch? He let go of the sword and leaned over the piece of furniture. A gentle smile decorated his features as he realize who was the person making all that ruckus. There, lying fast asleep, was Sasuke.

His star. His little light. His younger brother.

The child was sprawled all over the couch, one of his legs hanging off it limply. His little mouth was opened slightly, letting out soft snores. His jet-black hair covered his angelic face, hidding his close eyelids. Some of the bangs touched his nose, causing it to twitch in annoyance. Itachi's smile became amused. The teen reached out to brush the strands of hair from his forehead. The boy on the couch shifted, his mouth closing and eyes opening. Itachi gave his brother a small grin as Sasuke stared sleeply at the teen. He smiled sweetly.

"Welcome home Itachi." he said, rubbing his eye.

"Hey there Sasuke."

"I thought you were coming back tomorrow?"

"They allowed me to come back early." Sasuke blinked. "You should thank Shisui for that." Itachi chuckled.

"Yeah, I should. Let's go upstairs." The boy turned on the couch, giving his back to his brother. "I'm not moving." He said as he cuddled the furniture. Itachi raised a fine eyebrow, amused. He let out a dramatic sigh. "Okey. I'll carry you." He whispered.

The young shinobi reached out again. He placed an arm under the child's back and under his knees. He picked up the boy and pressed him to his chest. He made sure to be as gentle as he could. He always was when it came to his light. Because it was fragile. Everything of his brother was fragile. One simple smack could be enough to injure or kill him. He was delicate. It worried Itachi sometimes. The fact that someone like him could harm his sibling, scared him. The ANBU knew he would never hurt his light without a reason. He loved him. That's why he was being so careful right now, cradling him. Sasuke didn't protest, he simply relaxed on Itachi's hold and placed his head on his older brother's shoulder. His eyelids slided close once again and he smiled.

"Are you going to have any long term missions soon?" he asked. The answer was a quiet 'no' that made the boy's smile widened. "Good."

As Itachi walked to his room, his eyes fixed solely on his brother. His little star. Now that he was on his arms, nothing was wrong. Now, he could ignore the ANBU. He could ignore Danzo and the coup. He could ignore the mission and his father. He could ignore it all, because now what mattered was spending time with Sasuke. Being with his brother. The blood littering the blade of his sword was nothing. The abominable acts that took part on that clearing were nothing. The lives he took... that would take longer, but in order to heal, he needed Sasuke. He needed his kind spirit.

Now that he was on the second floor, he remembered something, and a frown was quick to appear.

"Sasuke." he called silently as he looked at the boy on his arms. The raven opened an eye. "Are mother and father here?" He shook his little head. "Meeting?" A nod. _Figures..._ Itachi couldn't say he was un happy. The opposite, actually. His father will always complain when he found Sasuke sleeping on his brother's bed, claiming they were to old for needing that kind of comfort. Itachi, of course, ignored him, as he found himself doing that lately. There were only a handful of people he really felt attached to among the clan's members. Sasuke was the first one. Which remind him, he still needed to put him to bed.

His feet padded noiselessly over the floor as they moved towards the older's bedroom. On normal nights, he would simply tuck Sasuke on his own bed, but tonight was different. tonight, he wanted to be with his little light. He wanted to be close to him and embrace him while they dream. Yes, tonight he wanted to be with his brother. He deserved some peace. He earned it. Just for a while.

He slided door to the right with his foot, opening it. The young shinobi entered the small room and made his way to the single bed, lying on the furthest end of place. He felt Sasuke moved on his arms, wanting to rest on the soft futon. Who was Itachi to desobey him? He swiftly walked to the matress and lay the warm body on it. His brother was already on his pijamas so Itachi would only have to take of his uniform. He did so and changed his dirty shirt and pants for more comfortable cloth he found on the dressers. When he was finally ready, he undid his ponytail, letting his hair run free down his back. Sasuke had once asked him why he didn't cut it, and he simply answered he always forgot, which wasn't a lie.

He turned to see the petite form resting on the bed and he smiled. "Sasuke?" Silence. "Are you sleep?" Nothing. He shook his head slightly in amusement.

He walked to the bed and placed an arm under his brother's back, lifting him so he could pull back the blankets. The child murmured something that Itachi didn't really care to hear. He slided into the matress with his sibling and covered both of them with duvet. It was cold outside, and Itachi would usually leave one window open. Again, his father complained, but Itachi shrugged of with the excuse that it could be an escape exit. Whatever. When he was at last on a comfortable position, he reached out for the other body on the bed. He smiled as he found it and wrapped an arm around his sibling's waist, pulling him closer. The child in question turned around and grabbed to fistfulls of his brother's night shirt as he hided on Itachi's chest.

"Are you comfortable?" asked the elder. He wanted his star to feel comfortable. "Yeah..." was the drowsy response. "Good." The teen buried his face on the boy's hair, inhaling the sweet scent. Rain. Rain and... ashes? That was a little strange. "Sasuke? Were you practicing jutsu today? Fire style justu?" A nod. Itachi moved his hand up to hold the back of his brother's neck before sliding over his back until he reached the boy's hips. He repeated the process slowly. "Did you got it right?"

"Not yet." he answered as he squirmed a little, leaning against his sibling's hand. "Its too small. The flame. Is not as large as yours, Itachi." He smile grew in his face as his brother kept rubbing his back. "Maybe you can help me?" The young shinobi stopped his hand between the child's shoulder blades, earning a whining sound of protest. He pushed the little raven from his chest so he could see his face as the hand from his back moved to touch his forehead with two fingers. "I'm sorry Sasuke. Maybe some other time." The teen was expecting a frown or a childish pout, but none of them happened. In fact, Sasuke giggled, which made Itachi's eyes widened a little.

"I knew you were going to do that." he said contently before buring his face on his brother's chest again. "Its okey. I wanted to do this one on my own." As the boy talked, the teen resumed rubbing his small back, this time, massaging it tenderly. The child in his arms hummed at the actions and, in response, he nuzzled Itachi's chest. Now it was the elder's time to chuckle. Looking down at his light, he noticed the full cheeks covered in a rosy tint and the sweet smile on his lips.

 _Perfect...,_ he thought feeling more grateful than ever with his cousin for taking over the mission. Now days, spending time with his star was something scarce. It was a gift. With all the stress and missions, he was happy to finally being bale to relax. Here, with his little brother in arms, he felt human. He felt right. Many shinobi think of him as a monster. He could see it on their eyes everytime he corners them. Everytime he drove his sword through the men's and women's chests, he _felt_ like a when he was with Sasuke it was different. His little light _wanted_ to be close to him. He wanted Itachi there, by his side. No child wanted a monster by their side, yet the boy always called him. Why? Because for Sasuke, he wasn't a monster. He was his kind and gentle older brother. He thought of him as a human. He made Itachi _feel_ human. And he wasn't about to ruin that image. He wanted his little brother to feel safe with him. Just like now. Tomorrow, reality will hit him with full force, but now, all that mattered was him and Sasuke.

 **So I have a little sister, she's six years younger, and we fight a lot. Or we use to. I always complained about how my mother would always be on Her side and how I couldn't do anything to defend myself because she would always cry later. It changed when I saw Naruto, and later on I meet Itachi. After seeing all the crap Sasuke gave him and how he stand it, because he loved him, I thought: 'If he could do it, then I can too.' We stopped fighting that much and even though I hated having my arm to twist it was nice. I don't know how to put it, but I started realizing how important se was for me. How my life would be too quiet and boring without her. We started to bond and even though we still get under eachother's skin, she somehow became my light. Horribly bright sometimes, but warm. I love her. And that's what I wanted to portrait here. Its not as dramatic in real life, but show still means a lot. So, I'll ask you: Do you have a little sister or brother? And if you do, how do you see them? Review please! I wanna hear ya!**


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